Blyleven and Foster TTM Returns and Another 1958 Topps

I received two great ttm returns today.

Former-Twin Bert Blyleven (apparently he played on other teams too, but who cares) signed his 1972 Topps and started another 1972 Twins team card for me.  He signed in two weeks for his $20 per card fee.

His individual card was an upgrade from the card I got signed in 2012 at TwinsFest where he used a black sharpie.

Here is a photo of him signing.  Sometimes, there would be a "handler" taking your item and asking what pen you'd like used, but not always.  There wasn't this time, and since they really try to pump as many people through the line as possible, I didn't feel like asking him to switch.  I should have though.

The team card is the start of a "premium player" card on which I'll get some of the better players from the 1971 team: Blyleven, Carew, Kaat, and Oliva.

I have other 72 Twins team cards going, but I don't want to pay $20 or more for a signature that may end up being hard to even notice on a crowded card like this one that Bob Gebhard returned a couple days ago.

George Foster signed a 1972 Topps MVP Award card already signed by Jim Rice as well as one of his three 1982 Topps cards, in addition to a 1982 Topps Traded card.  I didn't want to spend enough to get them all signed just yet, so I'll send the other two next year sometime.  I don't usually work on the Traded sets.

And I used some credit card points to pay for about half of another 1958 Topps card for my set collection.  This Joe Taylor card has been on my radar for a while but I didn't want to pay full price.

I have one more 1958 Topps card coming in the mail, which will bring the number of cards I need to complete the set down to 76.  When I started working on the set back in 2003, I said my goal was to have all of the living players from the set.  That's a joke, of course, because eventually they'll all pass away and you could fulfill the goal without even having a single card signed.

But, I've worked towards completing the set for the last 22 years and have amassed 417 unique cards, and many, many duplicates.  Probably about 190 duplicates.

The Cookie Rojas return I mentioned yesterday didn't show up today.  It looks like it will be Friday now.  I also have an Eric Davis Grand Slam print on its way back from a signing but that probably won't arrive until next week.